Visitors to the Historic Oakwood Cemetery on June 30, 2013  photo by Julie Russo

 Under solemn skies and in memory of the thousands of lives lost in the historic Battle of Gettysburg 150 years ago this week, a series of lectures and tours are being held at Raleigh’s Historic Oakwood Cemetery between June 30-July 3. The battle, considered “the high water mark”  of the civil war between the north and south, inflicted the largest number of casualties on U.S. soil in history, with more than 50,000 men killed, wounded or missing during the course of three days in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Virginia General Robert E. Lee, fighting for the confederate army, suffered a huge defeat between July 1-3, 1863, and with shattered troops turned his men south in what would be the turning point of the war.

 Today, the Battle of Gettysburg is remembered as a time of reconciliation and healing when the nation needed to pull together undivided. In a lecture and walking tour presented by civil war historian Bruce Miller at the Historic Oakwood Cemetery June 30, Miller shared some of the stories of the 1,500 confederate soldiers who are buried here. Opened by women in 1869, Historic Oakwood Cemetery provided burial grounds for soldiers and sailors of North Carolina. Today,  anyone can be interred there, though it is also a notable resting place for members of the military and their spouses, as well as men and women of historic significance.

City Serene is a non-denominational, non-profit news service providing the cultural and healing practices of various faith-based and artistic groups for a general audience. Contributors provide their perspectives here to offer solace and invite dialogue with respect to believers of all faiths, as well as non-believers.